Knowing God's Word

Our first line of defense against the attack of sin is a knowledge of God's Word. Psalm 119:9-11 says, "Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed thereto according to Thy Word. With my whole heart have I sought Thee: O let me not wander from Thy commandments. Thy Word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against Thee.''

The Bible gives us God's perfect standard of right and wrong. By learning the principles taught in Scripture, we can know what God wants us to do and avoid sin.

If you want to please God, you must study the Bible. If you want strength to defeat sin, you must give the Holy Spirit ammunition to use. This means memorizing Bible passages. Each of us has weaknesses in different areas. When we discover a weakness within ourselves, we should memorize Scriptures dealing with that weakness. These Scriptures will help us to overcome sin in these areas.

For example, if you often say things that you regret, you might memorize James 3:6, which tells us, "And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell.'' Remembering this verse will help you to think before speaking.